Smile
by TerryJ
Summary: Primarily SG-1 characters but it takes place as a tag to the SGA episodes The Return (I&II). Jack was able to resist the intrusion of the replicator mind probe; what's his secret? (Really just fluff from a wandering mind. One Shot.)


_A/N: If you haven't seen it; in the Atlantis Episode The Return some ancients return to the city and effectively kick out the SG personnel. While the Atlantis people are on Earth Jack O'Neill and Richard Woolsey go to Atlantis to try and negotiate an ongoing presence. During that time replicators take over the city and the Atlantis personnel return to save Jack and Woolsey and defeat the replicators before the Daedalus can drop a nuke in the city. Through the episode Jack has to take a swim in some cold water and both he and Woolsey get mind probed by the replicators but Jack is able to resist the probe. I found myself wondering (like Woolsey) how that is possible and then this thing came about._

 _2 warnings, I don't really watch Atlantis so I am not comfortable with being able to write the characters and it gets a little shippy._

* * *

Jack felt his shoulders relax slightly and he released a short breath as his foot found the familiar metal ramp.

He heard the schlopp of the wormhole and an audible shiver as Woolsey stepped out behind him but he didn't look back at the IOA representative or the small collective of Atlantis expedition members who were also exiting behind him; his eyes instead looking over the small gathering of people at the base of the ramp.

"Hank," Propriety had him greeting the base commander before, "I see the gang's all here." He remarked dryly even as his lips tipped up in a grateful smirk. It didn't matter how long he'd been wearing stars or that he was now living clear across the country; he would always consider SG-1 to be _his_ team. Not that he'd never admit how pleased he was that they had been there to welcome him home.

"Sir." Sam greeted simply, a relieved smile on her face.

Daniel acknowledged him with a lift of his chin, "Good to see you Jack. Sounded like it was close."

Jack bounced his eyebrows, "Ah; You weren't _worried_ about me were you?"

"We did not doubt your ability to persevere." Teal'c offered and Jack's grin faltered a little.

"Oh. Okay. So that's a no then?"

Teal'c's lips lifted into an nearly imperceptible enigmatic smile causing Jack to squint then roll his eyes. "Thanks buddy."

Jack finally turned his attention to the group who had followed him back to Earth.

"Okay gang, hit the showers then take 48 hours to gathering your things and get prepared to move back." He looked to Elizabeth, "Weir, you and Hank should probably connect as to how to best schedule the rest of the personnel and supplies and then we can talk about notifications and any changes you want to make, now seems like a good time for them."

He turned to leave but was stopped by a hand on his forearm, "Actually General," Weir released her grip when he turned back, an anticipatory raised eyebrow, "There's still a matter I'd like for you to debrief us all regarding."

Honest surprise flickered across Jack's face, "Didn't we already debrief?"

Weir bit her lip and nodded, "Yes Sir, but I've thought of another question."

" _One_ question?" He looked at her imploringly.

"Just one." She confirmed strongly.

Jack sighed and glanced to SG-1 and the gate room door before nodding with a visible grimace, "Okay, ONE question. And then I get first dibs on the showers." He gestured ahead of him with an open palm, "Let's go to the briefing room."

* * *

It was a little crowded with the Atlantis and SGC personnel but Weir stopped Landry as he was suggesting that SG-1 wait elsewhere, "Actually General, I'd like them to stay; They may need this information too; or may be able to contribute."

So finally, with everyone settled, Jack leaned back, eyebrows arched and a pointed look, "Doctor Weir? Your meeting."

She clasped her hands in front of her on the table and pulled herself straighter in her chair, "Actually it was Mr. Woolsey who first asked the question."

Everyone turned their attention to the bureaucrat who just sat with wide, confused eyes.

"I'm just now realizing that we could probably use an answer more helpful than 'Thinking of England'." Elizabeth regarded him with a hint of a smirk that clearly said it was as close as she would come to calling him a smart-ass. "So, when we debriefed on Atlantis you mentioned being able to resist when Talus, uh, when he was..." She gestured awkwardly with her fingers.

" _Putting his hand in my head?_ " Jack finished for her shortly, grimacing both from the memory and from where he knew this was going.

"Yes, that." The grimace on her face was shared by most of the people in the room. "So my question is, how?"

"How?" Jack blinked and stared blankly back at her.

"Yes. How were you able to resist his prying in your mind?" She looked steadily back at him, catching the slight twitch in the muscle below his eye, "I'm certain it's a skill that would be good for us to know and try to develop with others on front line teams."

Jack looked down at his hands in his lap and then back up, tense eyes drifting around the table.

Unsurprisingly both Sam and Daniel were leaning heavily forward on the table, eager curiosity on their faces.

With a resigned sigh he rolled back his shoulders and explained, "Carter is the one who helped me figure it out."

She straightened in surprise, "I did?"

He smirked, amused at her expected reaction, "They look human but they aren't; they are machines. There are somethings they don't understand."

"Emotions..." Mitchell realized out loud from the far side of the table.

Slowly, everyone around the table shifted as the realized they reason behind General O'Neill's discomfort in explaining exactly how he was able to hide from the replicator's in his own mind.

"That doesn't make sense." Sam spoke up. "They don't _have_ emotions. But they understand them. What's worse is they understand how to manipulate them." Her words trailed off quietly and Jack locked eyes with her understandingly, knowing she was referring to her own experiences.

"Yes." He agreed, "That's why there's a bit of a trick to it. Focus on just any emotion or one that is too strong and they can pick up on it and use it against you." He kept his face carefully neutral but took a pause. "Similarly you can't pick an emotion tied to a specific memory. They can take that and manipulate it as well."

Sheppard shook his head, "So what the hell _does_ work?"

Jack picked at a nonexistent splinter from the table in front of him, thinking carefully, "What you need is a memory of something that has happened multiple times and fills you with an almost overwhelming positive emotion but subtle. You know, nothing specific enough that anyone could put a label or a time stamp on it. "

Everyone stared back at him blankly.

After an extended silence Teal'c spoke up, "Perhaps it might be most helpful if you were able to provide a specific example."

Jack shared a long glare with the Jaffa.

He winced as Teal'c's slowly arched eyebrow silently declared victory and Jack closed his eyes slowly, realizing Teal'c was correct. When he reluctantly opened his eyes everyone was looking at him expectantly.

With a final sigh he took a deep breath and tried to put on his best intimidating General face, "Fine. _BUT_ it doesn't leave this room. If you need to train others in how to do this come up with your own examples or make something up. Got it?"

Everyone quickly nodded their agreement and Jack glared at each of them in turn, issuing a silent threat should their promise be broken.

His intimidation finished, he shifted his weight and returned his eyes studiously to a space in the middle of the table, forcing himself not to look at anyone, "What works best for me...What I think of is..." He grimaced and rubbed the side of his neck and looked up to the ceiling and released a breath. He brought his gaze level, "Okay, so there is this woman I'm maybe, perhaps, rather fond of..."

He allowed himself a quick glance around the room to gauge reactions. Luckily most everyone was professionally blank faced with the exception of Wolsey who looked shocked and uncomfortable.

"Yeah, so..." Jack continued, making sure Wolsey was not in his peripheral vision. "Sometimes, when I tell a joke or am just being a wise ass, and if I'm very lucky, this woman will give me a particular, endearing, indulgent smile." His eyes unfocused and a small smile flicked across his lips. "And each time I get this mix of being struck by how beautiful she is and disbelief that I can make her smile and desire to think of something else to keep her smiling and happiness and a little confusion and it fills me up so I can't think of anything else even if I want to..." His words faded and he disappeared in thought.

A quick cough from Daniel had Jack blinking back to the present and a rapid blush creeped up from his collar and he swallowed, fighting to keep his eyes from drifting around the table.

Instead he forced himself to lock eyes with Weir. "I have years of memories of that smile so if I think of it there is no consistent context, location, time, nothing logical for anyone to grab onto. Replicators can't understand it so we end up standing in an empty gate room for as long as I can keep myself focused on those composite memories as opposed to the hand in my head."

Elizabeth had to fight herself to not break under the intensity of the eye contact the General was pinning her with; she did allow herself to sink slightly back into her chair. "Thank you sir. That was very helpful."

"Well hopefully we've seen the last of those creeps and this has all been a waste of time." He gave a small grin despite the harshness of his words, the sarcasm allowing to bury some of his previous discomfort and slightly relax. "Any more questions?" He asked with a tone that made it clear which answer he wanted.

Weir shook her head negative and Jack finally allowed himself to glance around the table, although he consciously avoided looking at the 3 original members of SG-1. "No one else has any questions?" He didn't wait for Vala to speak despite her raised hand, "No? Perfect. I'm off to the showers." With a crisp nod to Hank he stood in one motion and left the room.

"Who knew the General was such a softy!" cracked McKay but the smirk fell away from his face as everyone else at the table glared at him.

The only one not glaring was Samantha Carter; her eyes were still focused on her hands which were braced on the table. Without a glance at Mckay she stood and silently left the room.

"What? What I say?" Rodney's head whipped back and forth receiving only eye rolls in response.

* * *

Jack heard the steps behind him as he neared the locker room but he didn't stop until he was through the door and staring at the row of lockers; none of which had his name on it. He had just decided to break in to Daniel's locker when the door opened behind him. He glanced over his shoulder and raised an eyebrow.

"Didn't we get a women's locker room years ago?"

The corner of her lips twitched and stilled as Sam shrugged while closing the door behind her.

Jack sighed and turned to face her properly, waiting for her to make the first move.

Predictably she tilted her head and looked at him steadily, "So..." She began evenly, " _Maybe, perhaps, rather fond of?_ "

Jack smirked, " _Perhaps_." He repeated solemnly, in contrast to the light in his eye.

She nodded, a thoughtful look on her face as she stepped closer, "And do I _know_ this woman with this powerful smile?"

He swallowed, "Rather well actually."

And there it was, slowly spreading across her face, a mix of adoration, patience, amusement as her lips curved, eyes brightened and cheeks blushed.

"You really are very sweet sometimes." Her words were quiet as she stepped closer.

He tried to force his own smile down, "Only sometimes, right?" He lifted his chin, "It's not good for Generals to be sweet."

Sam rolled her eyes, "I don't think you have anything to worry about." She took the final step into his personal space and tentatively put her hand on his chest, over his heart, "You're really okay?"

He covered her hand with his own, "Other than just admitting to a whole room that I'm so smitten that something as benign as a smile short circuits my brain?"

"Jack." She looked at him insistently.

His smirk transformed into a reassuring smile, "Fine. A little cold after my swim but nothing a hot shower won't fix."

Sam grinned, "You could shower at my place and I could help warm you up."

"You're going to be the death of me Samantha Carter." He groaned even as he tipped his head down for a quick kiss on her lips.

"Quiet the contrary," She grinned proudly, wrapping her arms around his neck, "Apparently I'm saving your sorry ass even when I'm not there."

Jack shook his head, "Of all the things you've done, _this_ you get cocky about?"

"Of course." Sam nodded, "Why wouldn't it?"

Jack rolled his eyes but said nothing.

"Now I just need to think of my _own_ replicator shield." She mused playfully. Jack arched his eyebrow and she continued, "Maybe it could be to be the times I was building the naquaddah generator with Siler."

Jack's eyes narrowed.

"Oh, or when I'm on my motorcycle. I've been teaching Teal'c..."

Jack's grin faltered but Sam continued with an exaggerated thinking face, placing her finger against her lips, "What else, what else...maybe it should be something to do with someone else that I'm close to...but who would that be I wonder?"

She smirked playfully up at Jack but he just stared at her, his face blank with exception of a slight tilt at one corner of his mouth and his eyes dark with intense emotion.

Sam breathed in sharply and all play fell from her grin as she moved her hands to either side of his face, "That's it." Her eyes were moving rapid fire, taking him in.

"What?" He asked, brows knitting together.

"My memory I can use to protect against a replicator." She explained carefully, eyes wide with excitement, "That look you just gave me. It's the same one that used to that let me know how you felt years before you could admit it, the look that you have right before we go from teasing to something more serious, it's the look that tells me you know exactly what's going on in my head and you love me for it or despite of it and its a little scary the amount of emotion that I feel from you when you give me that look, so much so that I can't think of anything else when I see it."

He blinked, following her explanation seriously until the end when his face suddenly split into a grin and his eyes danced with mirth, "Wait. Did you just say something I do shuts down _your_ brain?"

Sam rolled her eyes and dropped her hands to his shoulders but she smiled defeatedly, "Just for a second, not even, a _fraction_ of a second."

Jack continued to grin and bounced on his feet, "Still, isn't that kind of like being able to stop a freight train? Even if it's only for a fraction of a second it's still got to be a super human power."

"Now who's the cocky one?" Sam shook her head even as she let Jack pull her closer. Her smile faltered as she felt a shiver run through him. "You're still cold?"

"Not for long." He muttered, burrowing his face into the side of her neck.

She pulled back, smiling at the slight pout he gave, "We're on base."

"I know. But I'm going to have to get back to DC as soon as everything is wrapped up here." He explained dejectedly.

Sam smiled, stepping away, "All the better reason to take the evening off and come home with me."

Jack glanced at his watch, "Take the evening off? It's only 1300."

Sam smiled mischievously, "So? I thought you were _'The Man'_?"

A slow grin spread across Jack's face, "I guess I am. Okay. Evening starts at 1 in the afternoon. Shall we?" He moved to open the locker room door and gentlemanly indicated that Sam should lead the way.

Once in the hallway they came face to face with Shepherd, McKay and Beckett who were apparently waiting for him to be finished before entering the showers themselves.

"Boys." He greeted jovially.

The three other men glanced first to Sam and then to the General's obvious lack of changing.

"Is something wrong with the shower?" Beckett asked worriedly.

Jack grinned, "Not that I'm aware of. Decided not to use it."

"Um, iew?" Rodney commented, shrugging at the pointed glare Shepherd shot in his direction.

"Just for now McKay. Go on ahead, I'll see you tomorrow."

"You're leaving sir?" Shepherd asked, face blank.

Jack fought the compulsion to glance at Sam. "Yes, well, I thought perhaps I should take a break before deciding whether or not to fire you."

The younger officer straightened imperceptibly and nodded curtly, "Yes sir. Please, don't let us hold you up. Have a good afternoon."

Jack bounced his eyebrows and smirked but said nothing as he turned and followed Carter down the hall.

"Goodness." Breathed Beckett, "I don't think I'll ever figure that man out. He won't actually fire you, would he?"

Shepherd paused at the door of the locker room and looked to where he heard something like a giggle coming from the elevators. As he watched, General O'Neill made a comment and gestured dramatically to which Colonel Carter shook her head and tucked her chin while somehow maintaining eye contact. As a fond, amused smile crossed her face the General seemed to freeze until the bell of the arriving elevator caught his attention.

Shepherd turned his attention back to Beckett with a confident grin, "No, I think everyone is alright."


End file.
